# The Range of Range **URL:** \ **Category:** General\ **Created:** [November 13, 2024, 12:18pm UTC](https://eldraeverse.discourse.group/t/the-range-of-range/3045 "2024-11-13T12:18:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 5\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![avatar](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/eldraeverse.discourse.group/avatar/32/2_2.png) [@avatar](https://eldraeverse.discourse.group/u/avatar)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2024, 12:18pm UTC](https://eldraeverse.discourse.group/t/the-range-of-range/3045/1 "2024-11-13T12:18:08Z")
“You will hear it said that lasers have ‘a pathetically low range’ and are ‘suitable only for point defense and the inner engagement envelope’. To put this statement into its proper context, one must understand the proper scale of starship engagements; i.e., that the pathetically low range in question is approximately a light-second, or to put it another way, that the enemy vessel must close to within a distance _roughly equal to twenty-five diameters of your home planet_ before you can engage them with this notoriously short-ranged weapon.” – _The Dirtsider’s Guide to Interplanetary Warfare_ * * * This is a companion discussion topic for the original entry at [https://eldraeverse.com/2017/09/17/the-range-of-range](https://eldraeverse.com/2017/09/17/the-range-of-range) ---
**Author:** ![avatar](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/eldraeverse.discourse.group/avatar/32/2_2.png) [@avatar](https://eldraeverse.discourse.group/u/avatar)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2024, 8:00pm UTC](https://eldraeverse.discourse.group/t/the-range-of-range/3045/2 "2024-12-05T20:00:40Z")
**Comments migrated from WordPress:** > [@Specialist290 \ on 2017-09-17 09:42:21 wrote](#): > > This makes me wonder what a _long_-range weapon (I.e. one designed specifically for engagement at the other extreme end of the envelope; the notional “sniper rifle”) would be. > > > [@Alistair Young \ on 2017-09-17 14:08:11 wrote](#): > > > > An AKV with a thruster pack, dispatched to the general location of the target by coilgun. > > > > > [@Mark Atwood \ on 2017-09-22 11:12:59 wrote](#): > > > > > > Which does start really blurring the line between pulling the trigger on a sniper rifle, and handing a briefing, kill order, and plane ticket to an assassin. > [@AMS \ on 2017-11-20 12:39:19 wrote](#): > > If your laser is short-range you’re just not using a big enough laser. I’m sure someone has a re-jiggered starwisp tender for use as a inner-system PDC. > > > [@Alistair Young \ on 2017-11-20 14:33:18 wrote](#): > > > > KInda hard to steer at angular speeds useful for aiming, those. ---
**Author:** ![avatar](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/eldraeverse.discourse.group/avatar/32/2_2.png) [@avatar](https://eldraeverse.discourse.group/u/avatar)\ **Post date:** [December 5, 2024, 8:00pm UTC](https://eldraeverse.discourse.group/t/the-range-of-range/3045/3 "2024-12-05T20:00:40Z")
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**Author:** ![ahd](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/eldraeverse.discourse.group/ahd/32/70_2.png) [@ahd](https://eldraeverse.discourse.group/u/ahd)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2026, 5:01am UTC](https://eldraeverse.discourse.group/t/the-range-of-range/3045/4 "2026-02-10T05:01:27Z")
Commenting here to note the Sunlord’s polar laser arrays at Esilmur, per later posts. ---
**Author:** ![avatar](https://yyz2.discourse-cdn.com/free1/user_avatar/eldraeverse.discourse.group/avatar/32/2_2.png) [@avatar](https://eldraeverse.discourse.group/u/avatar)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2026, 7:50pm UTC](https://eldraeverse.discourse.group/t/the-range-of-range/3045/5 "2026-02-10T19:50:09Z")
Not technically lasers. (Gravitationally focused starlight - well, mostly starlight - if we’re being picky.) It’s amazing how much simpler life gets when you have the power of a star conveniently usable in a small number of places.